Olomomo Nut Company's origin story

by Justin Perkins|February 01, 2017|

My name is Justin Perkins, I’m the founder of this nutty, adventurous little business called Olomomo. Here’s my story. Watch the video above that captures the essence of our origins on The Cooking Channel, or read on. I hope it inspires you.

In 2008, I was working for an amazing company called Care2 while living in Washington, DC. After falling in love with some roasted nuts at a farmers market in DC, I moved back to my home town of Boulder, Colorado, to start a farmers-market based side business.

After several all-nighters of learning how to use the cute little pink nut roasting machine we found on nutroastingmachine.com (I laugh every time I say that), we came up with a few flavors just in time for the first farmers markets in April.

The products were an instant hit! Little did we know that it would grow from a side hobby to a real business and take us down the rabbit hole...

Things really took off. We won a business plan contest in Colorado. We scored a feature on the Cooking Channel. We were a featured snack for a Super Bowl promo on Good Morning America. We got a shout out from Hoda on the Today Show. We were voted one of the top brands to watch in 2014. We won the “best paleo friendly snack” in 2016. We attracted an incredibly talented team of employees. And we found confidence from a number of savvy investors who supported our brand and mission.

Now, I still work with Care2 because I love the company and the mission, but my side hobby has grown into a professional company. And I’m thrilled to have found a team that shares my values for making the world a better place. That’s why we’ve committed to being a certified B Corporation - which means we’re assessed by a third party to validate our sustainability and ethical business practices.

And we are a small team of people who care, have young children, and are on a mission to change the way snacking is done with delightfully adventurous products and simpler ingredients you can pronounce.

Last year, Olomomo grew to over 2,700 stores around the country, including Whole Foods, Safeway and Rite Aid. And we’re coming soon to Cost Plus World Market.

Now, this may sound like we’ve made it. But I gotta tell you, being an entrepreneur is quite a relentless adventure. It takes a lot of teamwork and persistence. And we put a lot of heart and love into the products - maintaining a small batch, high quality approach to produce the tastiest nuts in the world. We also solved a growing problem: how to get maximum flavor on a nut, but without a lot of extra junk like too much sugar, salt, msg, or other preservatives. Our flavor profiles are fun, unique, and only have a handful of real, whole food ingredients. Plus we have a variety of flavors for every palate, ranging from kids to hard corps chefs and foodies.

I hope you are inspired by this story, and I hope it gives you permission to take a step towards fulfilling a dream you might have. I’ve found a way to create something meaningful while still balancing a family and a full-time career, and a lot of that just came from being persistent and always looking for a creative way to make things happen.

And the Olomomo monkey? He was inspired by a trip to Oaxaca, Mexico, and the spirit of adventure and travel behind the products. Olomomo is the monkey god of adventure, the descendent of Ozomatli is the monkey god of dance and happiness in Mesoamerica. Whenever you think to yourself, "I should go for it," that's Olomomo nudging you.

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What people are saying about us..

So tasty! I love the flavor, texture, and crunch of Olomomo! The cherry vanilla nuts were so sweet and delicious and the cinnamon cayenne nuts were JUUUST spicy enough for me to take a break after eating them but I kept comping back! (I cayennte stop nomming!) Olomomo, y'all rock.Gabriella A

Great taste and nutritious too, the best almonds I have ever tasted!Manoj M.

Who says nutritious snacks can't also be decadently delicious? The flavor combinations Olomomo creates are out of this world! I am most partial to the maple masala pecans and the mango chipotle almonds and look forward to tasting whatever they come up with next.Eve Fox, The Garden of Eating

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Roasted and Seasoned Nuts to Fuel a Satisfying Life of Tasty Adventures